Frozen Sakura Blossoms
by BlueDemon13
Summary: Senbonzakura is a ninja, and his role in life is to protect his lord, a man named Hyorinmaru. And it would appear to be that the longer the ninja is around his lord, a strong feeling of love begins to bloom.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer – Bleach is not mine, all rights belong to Tite Kubo.

Warnings – OOC-ness, and light yaoi.

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The Kuchiki family was high nobles, although there were some family members that branch off and are trained as ninjas. Whether trained to protect the family itself, or to become a guardian of an allied noble. This story is about a particular ninja that goes by the name of Senbonzakura.

"Senbonzakura."

"Yes sir?" Said ninja bowed his head to his superior, and he proceeded to sit on his knees.

"The time has finally come. You are going to serve a master."

Senbonzakura nodded, a smile hidden beneath mask he wore. "Might I know who my new lord is?"

"That is for you to find out on your own. In fact it is time to bring you to him now."

"Understood," Senbonzakura bowed his head and stood up. "I'll go get ready."

"You do that." The superior nodded.

Senbonzakura had packed the few things that he deemed as essentials; which consisted of an assortment of small weapons, a few pairs of extra clothes and armor, his trusty sword, and lastly were spare masks just in case. "Are you finally ready to go?" A girl with short black hair greeted Senbonzakura at the gate of the Kuchiki Manor.

"Yes, and might I ask, who are you?" Senbonzakura questioned.

"I am Rukia Kuchiki, I am a friend to your new lord, and I also am going to be your escort." The girl explained. Senbonzakura nodded. "Now follow me. There is no public path to snow country, so I'd suggest staying close to me." Rukia smiled slightly.

"Snow country?" Senbonzakura furrowed his hidden eyebrows together.

"You heard me right, now pick up the pace, you do not want to get there after sunset." Senbonzakura said not another word the entire trek. That was until the temperature began to drop. "I guess we'll be at the palace soon." The ninja muttered.

"Correct." Rukia stated. Things began quiet once more; and Senbonzakura used this time to think. Why out of all the lords, he was stuck with the only one in snow country? Senbonzakura strongly disliked ice and snow. Why? Because nothing could really grow in frozen ground. No lush green bushes and trees, and most importantly, no bright sakura trees; and those meant a lot to the ninja. Said man was then snapped out of his thoughts by Rukia informing him that they had arrived. Senbonzakura used this chance to look around at his new surroundings. Snow and a few trees covered in frost. But then a building caught his eye. It was large castle alright, but it had a simple design, and it almost looked as if it was sculpted from ice. Just then, two guys walked out of the castle over to the two Kuchiki's. One was tall, with red hair tied up into a high ponytail, which made it look kind of like the top of a pineapple. The other was almost half the height of the red-head, he had white hair like the snow all around, and his eyes were a teal-green color. "So this is Senbonzakura?" The whitenette asked.

"Yes sir." Rukia nodded.

"Good, now come on in, it's freezing." The red-head said with a smile. Everyone then went into the castle, and Senbonzakura was brought to what appeared to be the throne room. The room was much like the outside of the castle, ice-covered, and in the throne sat the lord of the castle. He had long teal-colored hair, matching colored eyes, and there was a light blue "x" mark over his face like a scar. "He's finally arrived." The white-haired boy stated.

"I can see that," The lord chuckled softly. "Anyway, it's good to see you made it."

Not knowing what to do, Senbonzakura dropped down onto one knee and placed a fist over his chest, "Yes my lord."

"Stand; there is no need to be so formal. And if you didn't already know, my name is Hyōrinmaru." The lord smiled kindly. "And over here to my left," The lord gestured to the whitenette, "is someone I consider a son, his name is Toshiro Hitsugaya. To my right," Hyōrinmaru turned to the red-head, "is a subordinate of mine; he is Renji Abarai."

Senbonzakura looked them both before returning his gaze to Hyōrinmaru, "It's a pleasure to meet you all."

"The pleasure is mine; now feel free to explore the castle grounds. My home is your home now." Hyōrinmaru smiled softly. Senbonzakura only nodded and stood up. "Here, let me show you around." The lord stated and walked over to the ninja.

"Um… Thank you sir." Senbonzakura bowed his head in respect.

"What about us?" Toshiro suddenly asked.

"Feel free to do whatever you like." Hyōrinmaru waved a hand. Senbonzakura noticed the small smirk plastered on Renji's face as he exited the room with the whitenette. "Hmm, sometimes I feel like little Toshiro is really the boss around here." Hyōrinmaru chuckled lightly.

"Forgive me, but you appear to be very carefree sir." Senbonzakura stated.

"I don't mind; I just see that if there's no need worry at the moment, then it's safe to relax every now and again." Hyōrinmaru explained. Senbonzakura nodded. "Now if you don't mind me asking; tell me, why do you wear that mask?"

"I do not wish to reveal my face to others." The ninja ran a finger around the edge of his mask.

"I respect that." Hyōrinmaru nodded.

"Thank you." Senbonzakura smiled softly underneath his mask. The two then walked in silence. That was until Hyōrinmaru finally spoke up, "Ah, it seems we've arrived at your new room." The lord then proceeded to open the door to said bedroom. Senbonzakura looked in to scan his new living space; it was nice and simple, dark-colored walls, a single bed, and a single window. "I-I don't deserve this. I was taught to always be at my lord's side, even if that meant sleeping at the edge of his doorway." Senbonzakura shook his head in disapproval.

"Well that's not how things work around here. Besides, my room is just down the hall. There is no need to push yourself so hard." Hyōrinmaru chuckled slightly and then turned to leave. Senbonzakura just remained still, waiting for his thought process to return to him. He then shook his head and slowly made his way into the room, leaving the door wide open. The ninja plopped down onto the bed and sighed heavily. "This will definitely be a new life that I will have to get used to… But so far, I like it…" Senbonzakura muttered, gazing at the ceiling above him. And so this marks the beginning of Senbonzakura's new life with Hyōrinmaru.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer – Bleach is not mine, all rights belong to Tite Kubo.

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Days turned into weeks, which turned into months. Senbonzakura had grown to love his new life with Hyōrinmaru and the other inhabitants of the castle. He's even learned about all the others; Rukia - his cousin, Toshiro - the ice prince, Renji - Toshiro's right hand man, Rangiku - the "maid", Saru and Hebi -Renji's companions and Hyōrinmaru's friends, Haineko – Rangiku's pet cat, and lastly there was Shirayuki – a friend of Rukia's. Most of all, Senbonzakura has noticed that he gets real nervous around his lord on occasions. For example, just yesterday, while Senbonzakura tending to his little makeshift garden, Hyōrinmaru had come to help him and the ninja's heart beat like a drum in his chest, he also had trouble talking to his lord he ending up stuttering just about every sentence. Senbonzakura was extremely embarrassed, and it didn't help that Hyōrinmaru just laughed at him as if he was a child. Today the ninja was hoping to get some alone time in his garden. The garden was really just a small patch of land inside the castle that was free of ice. Senbonzakura had planted a few green plants in this garden, just to make him feel at home; and Hyōrinmaru was perfectly fine with the thought of a garden- which that made the ninja more than happy. Today Senbonzakura noticed that something new was planted into the soil. "Hmm? Who planted this? What plant is it?" He mumbled to himself.

"You really want to know?" Hyōrinmaru walked over and hovered over Senbonzakura who was currently knelt over the new plant.

"Ah, sir!" Senbonzakura blushed, thankful for his trusty mask, "Um, y-yes I would like to know about this plant."

"I planted it." The lord smiled.

"Really?" Senbonzakura asked.

"It reminded me of you – it's a sakura tree. Well, more like sapling at the moment." Hyōrinmaru chuckled lightly.

"T-Thank you!" Senbonzakura resisted the urge to glomp his lord to the ground.

"You're very welcome… Too bad I can't see that pretty smile I know is under that mask of yours." Hyōrinmaru smirked and then walked away; leaving Senbonzakura who was currently in shock at his lord's kind words. Once the ninja's mind was back on earth, he sighed softly and stood up; taking one last look at his new garden guest before also leaving the garden. "That was awfully sweet of Lord Hyōrinmaru." Shirayuki muttered when Senbonzakura passed her.

"What was that?" The ninja stopped in his tracks and turned to face the white-haired woman.

"All I said was that was sweet of our lord. Normally he doesn't treat others like that, only Toshiro." Shirayuki explained.

"W-What are you trying to say?" Senbonzakura asked quietly.

"I think our lord may like you." Shirayuki answered.

"I-Impossible! I'm his ninja and that is it!" Senbonzakura barked.

"You act just like a little kid sometimes." Shirayuki sighed and averted looking at Senbonzakura.

"I am no child." Senbonzakura growled.

"Calm down…Hmph, this conversation is over." The whitenette shook her head and then slowly walked away. Senbonzakura was then left alone. "Gaaah, stupid!" Senbonzakura growled at himself and then headed towards the training grounds. Maybe blowing off some steam would help him think. Once at the frosty "battlefield", Senbonzakura glanced around trying to think of something to do. All of a sudden Senbonzakura has to turn around and use his sword as a shield seeing as he was being attacked. "Who's there?" The ninja questioned his attacker.

"It's me~" The busty blond known as Rangiku giggled.

"What do you want?" Senbonzakura sighed and placed his blade over his shoulder.

"You seemed lost in thought earlier, and I wanted to help." Rangiku answered with feline-like smile on her face.

"How could you possibly help me? Besides I don't have any problems." Senbonzakura glared at the blond through his mask.

"What you didn't think I noticed the way you act towards Hyōrinmaru? Heehee, you are so in love~" Rangiku giggled.

"W-What? No! That's completely absurd!" Senbonzakura yelled at the blond.

"Don't deny it Senbonbon. Besides I want to help you in your relationship." Rangiku smiled kindly to the ninja.

"There is no relationship between Hyōrinmaru and me." Senbonzakura grumbled.

"You are really stubborn, you know that?" Rangiku pouted.

"Hmph." Senbonzakura just turned away from the blond and went back to thinking of how to train for the day.

"Fine then, why not fight me? If you win then I'll never talk to you about love again, but if I win, you need to accept your feelings." Rangiku suggested.

"… Sounds good to me." Senbonzakura huffed.

"Yay! Now let's get ready. The rules are simple, try to land a critical hit to your opponent; but don't actually hurt them." Rangiku explained.

"Fine by me." Senbonzakura nodded. The two then stood an equal distance from one another, their swords out in front of them. Everything was completely silent as the wind blew, causing both fighters hair to bellow around them. Suddenly, without warning, Rangiku disappeared. This caught Senbonzakura off guard as he strained to look for her. "Behind you!" Rangiku gave away her position as she thrust forward her sword, aiming at Senbonzakura's lower back. Due to the warning, Senbonzakura was able to dodge and hit away her sword with his own. Rangiku was quick to retaliate, finding her way behind Senbonzakura once more, going in for an attack to make him lose his balance. Getting irritated, Senbonzakura blocked her move and entangled their swords together; using strong force to get Rangiku to lose her grip and send her blade flying and held his blade against her throat. "Hmph, I win." Senbonzakura huffed and sheathed his sword.

"Really?" Rangiku asked and quickly stole Senbonzakura's blade and kicked him to the ground; now holding his own weapon against his throat.

"But! I clearly won with the rules you set!" Senbonzakura growled.

"You didn't have me cornered; even in a real fight I could have done the same as right now. Admit you lost." Rangiku huffed as her blade returned from its air trip; landing securely in dirt next to Senbonzakura's head.

"Fine then." Senbonzakura spat.

"Do you know why you lost? You got cocky. Don't lose your temper, and never let your guard down." Rangiku sighed and stood up, taking her sword from the dirt and returning Senbonzakura's sword to him.

"Understood…" Senbonzakura mumbled as he reclaimed his sword and stood up.

"Okay. And you remember our deal? Go ahead, tell me what you think of Hyōrinmaru~" Rangiku giggled.

Senbonzakura took a deep breath, "I love Hyōrinmaru!" He turned his head away in embarrassment and clenched his hands into fists at his sides. "Haha! I knew it!" Rangiku jumped up and down like little girl and squealed. Senbonzakura blushed and then relaxed. "See that wasn't so hard now was it?" Rangiku asked. Senbonzakura shook his head. "See?" The blond then smiled. Things then suddenly came crashing down as a loud explosion sounded off from a different part of the castle. "What was that?!" Rangiku gasped.

"Let's go!" Senbonzakura growled and ran straight to the source of the sound. What Senbonzakura found wasn't good. One of the rooms had a large gaping hole in the wall, and Renji and Hyōrinmaru were in the middle of the rubble. "What happened?!" Senbonzakura ran straight to his lord's side.

"They took him…" Hyōrinmaru growled. Senbonzakura gulped; he had never seen his lord mad. "Damn it! They got Toshiro!" Renji punched the nearest wall.

"Who are they?" Senbonzakura asked.

"The hollows."


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer – Bleach is not mine, all rights belong to Tite Kubo.

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"Senbonzakura." Hyōrinmaru stated.

"Yes sir?" The ninja quickly responded.

"Gather your tools; we have to get Toshiro back!" Hyōrinmaru growled. Senbonzakura nodded and then flash-stepped to his room; getting all of his ninja supplies. He met up with his lord and Renji in front of the castle gates. "… You need to head north; Rukia already went on ahead, go met up with her." Hyōrinmaru ordered Senbonzakura.

"Hurry it up! We have no time to waste!" Renji added. Senbonzakura nodded and ran off. Luckily he was able to find Rukia in a matter of minutes. "Senbonzakura… Thank goodness you're here." Rukia stated, her focus never leaving a building that was a few feet away.

"Is that the place where the hollows are keeping Toshiro?" Senbonzakura asked.

"Yes. They have him hostage on the second underground floor. Tier Harribel is the one who's set up this whole thing." Rukia explained.

"So we have to go after her?" Senbonzakura muttered.

"Right, the quicker the better; after all, Hyōrinmaru won't think straight-he'll throw himself into danger if it means to get Toshiro back." Rukia added. Senbonzakura wasted not another second, finding and carefully slipping into the enemy territory. Being the skilled ninja that he is, Senbonzakura easily made it to his destination with being detected; it was almost too easy… "Well, well, well. Would you look at that, Hyōrinmaru didn't want to get his hands all dirty, so he sent his little henchman." A woman appeared from the shadows.

"And who might you be?" Senbonzakura asked as calmly as he could.

"Hmm, have I ticked a nerve? Anyway, you may call me Tier Harribel." The blond woman smirked slightly.

"I have no business with you, now return Toshiro, immediately." Senbonzakura began to place his hand over the hilt of his sword.

"Now things aren't that simple… Hmm, why don't we make a deal? Fight me; if you win then I'll hand the boy over to you peacefully." Harribel chuckled.

"… And if you win?" Senbonzakura asked.

"Well, you'll be dead." Harribel said bluntly.

"I see. I accept your challenge." Senbonzakura unsheathed his sword and held it out in front of him.

"Foolish puppet; prepare to be defeated at the hands of Harribel!" The blond pulled out her own blade, and without second thought she made the first move. The move was a simple thrust forward, in which Senbonzakura blocked it with ease; however, there was enough force in the attack to push him back. Shaking his head, Senbonzakura relayed his own series of attacks; each of which Harribel dodged. And when Harribel saw an opening, she kicked Senbonzakura in the gut and jumped back. The attack caught the ninja completely off guard, and he too jumped back. Seeing as how neither side would make another move, Senbonzakura pulled out a kunai, and threw it at the unsuspecting Harribel. It would seem that the weapon did as expected; fazing Harribel for a few moments. Using this chance, Senbonzakura moved in to deal a blow to the off guard blond. Just as it seemed that Senbonzakura's little plan worked, Harribel was actually fooling the ninja so that he'd come closer; she readied her blade and jabbed Senbonzakura in the stomach, piercing right through his armor. "Fool." Harribel muttered, and then she punched Senbonzakura in the face, causing his mask to crack; and slowly it began to crumble, piece by piece. Harribel then began to laugh as she pushed the ninja off her sword and let him fall to the floor. The blond stood above Senbonzakura, "It looks like I won." Senbonzakura smirked, his mouth now fully revealed, and he spat a bit of blood in Harribel's face. "Ah! You son of a-", She was cut off by Senbonzakura kicking her off.

"Never let your guard down unless you know you've won." Senbonzakura huffed as he slowly stood up, using his sword as a balance. Harribel growled and was about to go in for another attack when all of the sudden, ice began to creep up her legs; freezing her in place. "What in the world?!" She tried to break the ice, but all her attempts to do so failed.

"You've meddled with me for the last time Harribel." Hyōrinmaru walked into the room, with Rukia and Renji right behind him.

"Hmph, just do us all a favor and die." Harribel spat.

"You just can't let the past be the past… You've lost Harribel, just make this easy and give up." Hyōrinmaru sighed.

"Give up? I'll never give up!" Harribel growled as the ice crept up her body, now reaching her torso.

"I tried." Hyōrinmaru muttered and looked away from the blond. Then the ice moved up Harribel's body even faster, completely covering her; it then scattered into millions of pieces. Knowing that the battle was for sure over, Senbonzakura slowly fell back to the floor, coughing up a bit more blood. "Senbonzakura, don't move!" Hyōrinmaru rushed over to the ninja's side, "Renji, Rukia, go retrieve Toshiro. I'll bring Senbonzakura back to the castle for medical attention." That moment Senbonzakura weakly smiled and passed out.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer – Bleach is not mine, all rights belong to Tite Kubo.

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"Senbonbon~ Wakey-wakey." Said ninja groaned as he opened his eyes to see Rangiku standing above him.

"Ugh, why are you here?" Senbonzakura asked; his voice hoarse from lack of use.

"Oh my gosh, he's awake! Someone go get Hyōrinmaru!" Rangiku called out.

"…How long have I been out?" Senbonzakura muttered.

"It's been a little over a week. Hyōrinmaru has been worried sick about you; he even went and got Retsu Unohana to be your doctor. Um…On the brighter side; you should have seen the look on the lord's face when he saw your pretty face for the first time. Man, you make all the girls in this castle jealous you're so pretty." Rangiku giggled. This caused Senbonzakura to place a hand to his cheek; there was no mask. The ninja then blushed. "Ooohhh~ Where's Hyōrinmaru?! He's missing out on the cuteness!" Rangiku squealed.

"I'm not cute!" Senbonzakura glared at the blond in front of him.

"Yes you are!" Rangiku smiled. Suddenly the sound of running could be heard from down the hall. "Is he really awake?!" It was Hyōrinmaru.

"Yep!" Rangiku cheered and then she ran out of the room; leaving Senbonzakura and Hyōrinmaru alone.

"You really are awake…" Hyōrinmaru sighed in relief.

"I'm sorry." Senbonzakura muttered.

"Why are you sorry? I should be the one apologizing; I wasn't thinking straight and you got hurt because of my rash actions you almost got killed." Hyōrinmaru huffed.

"My lord, it's my job to keep you safe, and I'm glad to see that you are unharmed." Senbonzakura gave a weak smile.

"You are too kind Senbonzakura…" Hyōrinmaru smiled back at the ninja. Senbonzakura could only nod, and he attempted to stand up. Which the ninja was able to get to his feet, however he was really unbalanced and wobbly. "Hold on." Hyōrinmaru carefully slipped an arm around the ninja's waist to keep him standing straight.

"T-Thank you." Senbonzakura muttered and looked down; trying to hide his blush with his hair.

"Something wrong Senbonzakura?" Hyōrinmaru asked.

"No sir, I'm still a bit weak is all." The ninja replied.

"If you say so… Well, is there any where you'd like me to bring you to?" Hyōrinmaru asked.

"My garden if you don't mind." Senbonzakura stated.

"Wanting to check on the sakura sapling?"

"Yes sir." Senbonzakura nodded.

"Alright." Hyōrinmaru then carefully assist Senbonzakura in walking to the small indoor garden. Once at the garden, Senbonzakura happily took a seat and just looked at each one of his plants; focusing most on the sakura of course. "It's grown some." The ninja stated with a smile.

"Beautiful…" Hyōrinmaru muttered.

"It is." Senbonzakura nodded.

"I wasn't referring to the plant." Hyōrinmaru chuckled. This got Senbonzakura to blush. "You should go without your mask more often… Then again, I don't think I want others to see your pretty face; it'll make me jealous." Hyōrinmaru smirked.

"M-My lord!" Senbonzakura squeaked.

"Yes?" Hyōrinmaru chuckled at the ninja's embarrassment.

"H-How can you say things like that?" Senbonzakura asked.

"What? Can't I complement others?" Hyōrinmaru pouted slightly.

"T-That's not what I meant… I mean how can you say those kinds of things to me?" Senbonzakura questioned.

"Because I like you." Hyōrinmaru shrugged his shoulders.

"W-What?" Senbonzakura gasped.

"You heard me. Now tell me, truthfully, do you like me?" Hyōrinmaru asked.

"No sir, I don't like you…" Senbonzakura muttered. Hyōrinmaru frowned and sighed. "My lord," Senbonzakura stood, "I don't like you, because I l-love you." Hyōrinmaru stared at the ninja in disbelief, but then smiled. "You had me going there for a second." Hyōrinmaru chuckled.

"Sorry." Senbonzakura pouted.

"Hmph, don't be." Hyōrinmaru smiled. Senbonzakura nodded, his hair falling in front of his face. "I forgot that it wasn't in a ponytail anymore…" Senbonzakura sighed and pushed his hair out of his face.

"Need something to put it up?" Hyōrinmaru asked.

"Yes please." Senbonzakura sighed.

Hyōrinmaru then pulled a teal-colored ribbon from his yukata, "I know it's girly, but it'll work."

"You planned this didn't you?" Senbonzakura huffed as he took the ribbon and put his hair up.

"Actually, I didn't," Hyōrinmaru chuckled, "It was just a coincidence."

"Sure it was." Senbonzakura sighed.

"Oh come on… Anyway, let's go see the others; I'm sure they'd like to know you are up." Hyōrinmaru suggested.

"Would that really matter? I'm sure that Rangiku has told every living creature in the castle that I'm awake." Senbonzakura stated.

"True… But don't you want to see everyone?" Hyōrinmaru asked.

"I guess, but truthfully, I'm just really hungry." Senbonzakura muttered.

"Right, how could I forget that you've been passed out for a week?" Hyōrinmaru sighed.

"It's alright my lord." Senbonzakura chuckled slightly.

"Again I must say, you are too kind." Hyōrinmaru smiled. The lord then led Senbonzakura to the kitchen to get him the food that he needed. Surprisingly, Renji and Toshiro were in the kitchen as well. "It's good to see that you're awake Senbonzakura." Renji stated happily.

"Thank you, it's good to finally be awake." Senbonzakura replied.

"Ahem, Toshiro, do you have anything to say to the ninja?" Renji bumped the whitenette with his elbow.

"Thank you for saving me from Harribel." Toshiro muttered under his breath.

"I don't deserve your thanks; after all, I wasn't the one that even beat Harribel." Senbonzakura sighed.

"No, but you did fight her, and distracted her long enough for the lord and I to arrive." Renji stated.

"He's right; you need to quite being so hard on yourself." Hyōrinmaru patted Senbonzakura lightly on the back.

"Oh, by the way, I think you might want to put this on." Renji handed Senbonzakura one of the spare masks that the ninja owned.

"Thank you." Senbonzakura happily took the mask and put it on his face.

"Aww, now I can't see your face." Hyōrinmaru huffed. This got Renji to chuckle. "What's so funny?" Both Senbonzakura and Toshiro asked.

"Nothing, nothing. Now come Toshiro, let's leave these two alone." Renji stated.

"Why should we?" Toshiro huffed. The red-head then whispered something in Toshiro's ear that got him to blush lightly. "F-Fine, see you around." Toshiro bowed to Hyōrinmaru and left the kitchen.

"Wait for me!" Renji followed after the whitenette.

"Looks like we're alone again." Hyōrinmaru pointed out.

"Isn't that a good thing?" Senbonzakura asked.

"Hmm, you're right. Now come on, let's find you some food." Hyōrinmaru stated. Senbonzakura nodded; smiling happily behind his mask.


End file.
